07 de março de 2024

Phyllocnistis on pond apple (Annona glabra)

This one's a Florida specialty: entirely linear mines on either the upper or lower surface of pond apple (Annona glabra) leaves. This is another one that should be pretty easy to rear, because pupation is within the leaf. I recommend waiting to collect until the pupal chamber has been formed; this is often at the edge of the leaf, where it causes a small fold.
photo of Phyllocnistis mine in pond apple leaf
Is it an undescribed species or a new host for one that already has a name, like P. liriodendronella? We won't know until someone rears adults (or, maybe, gets a DNA barcode from a larva). Here are all the observations I've seen of these mines:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/40606429
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/42683330
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/45007606
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/45007608
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/53064418
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/93788136
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/172311718
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/175384725
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/196317320
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/201302859

Posted on 07 de março de 2024, 03:01 PM by ceiseman ceiseman | 1 comentário | Deixar um comentário

06 de março de 2024

Marmara bark mines on eastern conifers

Another mystery that needs to be solved by rearing is the identity of the Marmara species on eastern conifers other than white pine. It could be that they are all M. fasciella, but we can't be sure without comparing the adults (or DNA, theoretically). The mines on both fir and hemlock, like those of M. fasciella on white pine, end with an excised bark flap on the underside of which the cocoon is spun (see this blog post to get an idea of what that looks like--also this observation shows it well), so this should be a relatively easy one to rear: just look for the bark flaps in late spring, carefully peel them off without damaging the cocoon (maybe using forceps), and put in vials to wait for adults to emerge.

Here is a mine I found on balsam fir (Abies balsamea) in Vermont:
photo of Marmara mine in balsam fir bark
These mines have also been found on A. balsamea in Maine...
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/85256161
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/88855981
New Brunswick...
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/109767802
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/110299136
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/112465983
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/112465186
Nova Scotia...
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/116740078
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/177333514
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/177333515
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/181658204
...and Prince Edward Island:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/80468907
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/80318087
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/80315955
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/80823460
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/80872038
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/80870913
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/84287251
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/109427171
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/203194404

Mines have also been found on nonnative Abies concolor in New York
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/39616187
and Ontario
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/84616887
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/132083669

Mines on Tsuga canadensis were first reported in Massachusetts in 1917. They have also been found in New Brunswick,
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/110052658
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/110523210
Nova Scotia,
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/112555245
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/116749240
Prince Edward Island,
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/82228706
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/110703281
Maine ,
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/53518387
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/170265679
New York,
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/73777352
Vermont,
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/201502914
and Pennsylvania
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/104574273

Normally trees in the cypress family don't have smooth bark that allows you to see mines, but a few mines have been found on Atlantic white cedar (Chamaecyparis thyoides) in Massachusetts,
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/67570436
on eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana) in Massachusetts,
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/68054967
and on northern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis) in Ontario
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/68659854
Pupation bark flaps haven't been found on these hosts, so it's conceivable that the larvae exit the mines and wander for a while before spinning cocoons, as is the case with most Marmara species... or maybe they do form bark flaps that just haven't been noticed yet.

Posted on 06 de março de 2024, 08:12 PM by ceiseman ceiseman | 0 comentários | Deixar um comentário

02 de março de 2024

Peltigera (lichen) miners!

There are apparently dark-winged fungus gnats (Sciaridae) that mine in pelt lichens (Peltigeraceae) in Europe. @nealkelso found linear mines in a Peltigera in Minnesota, but the larva that came out of them turned out to be a midge in the genus Bryophaenocladius (Chironomidae).
photo of Bryophaenocladius mine in a Peltigera thallus
The larva is shown in this observation and this one too; so we know larvae are active in July, at least.
Neal has been using a "Lichen Miner" tag to keep track of Peltigera observations that show these mines, and they are all over North America:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?verifiable=any&place_id=any&field:Lichen%20Miner=yes
And he has noted a few other examples outside of iNaturalist:
https://www.waysofenlichenment.net/lichens/Peltigera/canina/Peltigera_canina-jason-20090813-57-32%251.jpg
https://www.waysofenlichenment.net/lichens/Peltigera%20canina
So far this midge species is known from just a single larva, and adults are needed to identify it--or describe it if it is new. So if you know where to find Peltigera, please keep an eye out for mines, and if you find them, collect the thalli to try and rear adults! Any larval or pupal remains should be preserved in alcohol along with the adult midges.
It's worth keeping an eye out for mines in other foliose lichens too; I'm told that mines of an unknown insect have been found on Sticta (also Peltigeraceae) in Panama.

Posted on 02 de março de 2024, 10:25 PM by ceiseman ceiseman | 1 comentário | Deixar um comentário

12 de novembro de 2023

Streamlining the review process for leaf mine observations

A prolific poster of leaf mine observations wrote to me today to make sure he wasn't overwhelming me with an excessive number of observations, and I thought it might be useful to share my reply with everyone.

It is true that I'm still two months (and about 3800 observations) behind in reviewing observations in this project after my summer travels, but I certainly wouldn't want to rein in anyone's enthusiasm for leafminers! If you do your best to ID each observation, it isn't really too much work for me when I just get to click "agree" on most of them. And when you have no clue, the AI/CV is getting better and better--when I was new to iNat I used to get grumpy about people suggesting ridiculous IDs based on what the computer suggested, but the real problem is people who go around agreeing with ridiculous IDs when they actually have no clue. At this point, if you select the computer's top suggestion when you don't know what a leaf mine is, I think you'll be right more often than not, and if the ID is wrong, it's not any more work for me to add the right ID than it is if you just put the default "Pterygota."

And just to make sure you're aware, the first edition of my leafminer guide is available for $5, and that should help a lot with identifications when you know what the host plant is: https://bugtracks.wordpress.com/2021/06/25/leafminers-for-all/

I'll add that if you want the most current and complete information about North American leafminers, I recently started sending out monthly installments of the third edition, as I announced on my blog earlier this month: https://bugtracks.wordpress.com/2023/11/02/announcements-3/. The second and third editions include a spreadsheet of 1000+ mystery mines that need further investigation, for those of you who are interested in collecting and rearing leafminers to try and solve some of these mysteries.

Thanks everyone for your interest in leaf mines, whether you only occasionally photograph them or post dozens of observations a day!

Charley

Posted on 12 de novembro de 2023, 12:27 AM by ceiseman ceiseman | 4 comentários | Deixar um comentário

02 de julho de 2023

Taking a break!

Hi everybody,

I've managed to keep up with this project through the end of June, but I will have very limited computer access between now and mid-August, so there is no point in tagging me on anything until then. It also (as always) will help me tremendously in trying to catch up on the backlog if people make an effort to ID observations (their own or others') before I get to them--it's really helpful to just be able to click "agree"! If you want to try identifying leafminers but don't know how to go about it, you can get my e-book here.

If you have something urgent you want to reach me about--like rearing advice (beyond what's on my website) or questions about what to do with specimens you've managed to rear--the best way to reach me is by email; I'll also check iNaturalist messages when I can.

Thanks, and I look forward to seeing what you all find this summer!

Charley

Posted on 02 de julho de 2023, 06:13 PM by ceiseman ceiseman | 7 comentários | Deixar um comentário

19 de abril de 2023

Oak shothole leafminer

This is a friendly reminder to not post observations of holes in leaves to this project, unless of course they are associated with leaf mines. And please take a look at this blog post before identifying anything as Japanagromyza viridula (oak shothole leafminer), whether in this project or not.

Posted on 19 de abril de 2023, 12:48 PM by ceiseman ceiseman | 1 comentário | Deixar um comentário

13 de novembro de 2022

Why midge galls aren't leaf mines

I just put together a blog post explaining this, in case anyone's interested: https://bugtracks.wordpress.com/2022/11/13/can-gall-midges-be-leafminers/

Posted on 13 de novembro de 2022, 05:54 PM by ceiseman ceiseman | 7 comentários | Deixar um comentário

14 de outubro de 2022

Mystery mine on American trailplant (Adenocaulon bicolor)

Here's a mystery I've been trying to solve for a decade now: a long, linear leaf mine of an agromyzid fly on Adenocaulon bicolor in the Pacific Northwest. It should be a relatively easy one to rear, since the puparium is formed in the leaf (hidden on the lower surface) and there are apparently at least two generations per year, with mines present from June to October.

photo of agromyzid mine in an American trailplant leaf @jmole, WA, 6/9/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in an American trailplant leaf @lumenal, OR, 7/6/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in an American trailplant leaf @lumenal, OR, 7/12/2022

photo of agromyzid mine in an American trailplant leaf @lumenal, OR, 7/18/2022

photo of agromyzid mine in an American trailplant leaf @flammulated, OR, 7/22/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in an American trailplant leaf @flammulated, OR, 7/30/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in an American trailplant leaf @brnhn, WA, 8/18/2022

photo of agromyzid mine in an American trailplant leaf @kurtsteinbach, WA, 8/30/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in an American trailplant leaf @brnhn, OR, 9/5/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in an American trailplant leaf @johndreynolds, BC, 9/18/2020

Posted on 14 de outubro de 2022, 03:40 PM by ceiseman ceiseman | 3 comentários | Deixar um comentário

06 de outubro de 2022

Mystery mines on Cape-ivy (Delairea odorata )

Here's another one I'm really hoping someone can collect and rear. The South African moth Digitivalva delaireae is being considered as a potential biological control agent for Cape-ivy in California and Oregon, but meanwhile people have been regularly observing some native(?) leafminer on this plant, and no one knows what it is. There is typically a roughly circular brown spot at the beginning, where the mine is apparently contorted or forms a tight spiral, and this suggests to me that the fly is something other than just one of the polyphagous Liriomyza species that are common in southern California. Although mines have been observed in just about every month of the year, the only one with a larva inside was found on April 11 in Marin County.

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @thetorterra, Santa Cruz Co., 1/16/2022

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @manidae, Los Angeles Co., 3/28/2020

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @marionanoiram, Marin Co., 4/11/2016 [larva present]

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @nealkelso, San Francisco Co., 4/24/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @garth_harwood, San Mateo Co., 6/4/2020

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leafphoto of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @sea-kangaroo & @leslie_flint, San Mateo Co., 6/16/2019

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @silversea_starsong, Orange Co., 7/4/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @ctrubo, Los Angeles Co., 7/18/2022

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @cynestor, Santa Barbara Co., 7/23/2022

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @dlbowls, San Luis Obispo Co., 8/9/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @cynestor, Ventura Co., 8/27/2022

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @esppim, San Francisco Co., 8/31/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @sea-kangaroo, Monterey Co., 9/18/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @danieldas, San Francisco Co., 9/19/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @gyrrlfalcon, San Mateo Co., 10/16/2019

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @conormcmahon, Santa Barbara Co., 10/18/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @bugornot, Orange Co., 11/2/2020

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @nealkelso, San Francisco Co., 11/8/2020

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leafphoto of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @nealkelso, San Francisco Co., 11/16/2020

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @nealkelso, San Francisco Co., 11/17/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @wxynez, Los Angeles Co., 12/1/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @thetorterra, Santa Cruz Co., 12/6/2021

photo of agromyzid mine in a Cape-ivy leaf @jon_sullivan, Monterey Co., 12/30/2018

Posted on 06 de outubro de 2022, 11:32 PM by ceiseman ceiseman | 3 comentários | Deixar um comentário

09 de abril de 2022

Mystery mine on Lantana

Another commonly observed mystery leafminer that I'm hoping someone can collect and rear: An Ophiomyia species (Agromyzidae) that forms winding linear mines on Lantana camara, L. x hybrida, and maybe other Lantana spp., in California, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. The well-known species O. camarae makes a mine based on the midrib, with short extensions into the blade along either side:
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @silversea_starsong, Mission, TX, 11/5/2021
The mystery mines are not based on the midrib, although they sometimes have similar short branches where they encounter lateral veins. It's conceivable that they are made by the same species, but adults need to be reared to confirm this.
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @susanhewitt, Carlsbad, CA, 10/1/2019
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @dan_johnson, Houston, TX, 10/6/2019
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leafphoto of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @kimberlietx, Southlake, TX, 6/16/2020 (note long lower-surface portion in this example)
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @victorengel, Austin, TX, 7/2/2020
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leafphoto of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @silversea_starsong, Newport Beach, CA, 7/15/2020 (another example with a long lower-surface portion)
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @silversea_starsong, Garden Grove, CA, 10/26/2020
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @wsweet321, Long Beach, CA, 11/1/2020
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @terit, Natchez, MS, 11/15/2020
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @wsweet321, Long Beach, CA, 1/24/2021
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @sessilefielder, Los Angeles Co., CA, 1/2021
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @chalon9, El Cajon, CA, 7/23/2021
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @joemdo, Medley, FL, 7/26/2021 (this one has a distinct frass line and may have been made by a different species)
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leafphoto of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @silversea_starsong, Orange, CA, 8/23/2021 (the first example follows the lateral veins a lot)
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @biocowboy, Long Beach, CA, 8/24/2021
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @wsweet321, Long Beach, CA, 9/16/2021
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @milliebasden, San Diego, CA, 9/28/2021
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @vcharny, Dauphin Island, AL, 10/11/2021
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @silversea_starsong, Mission, TX, 11/5/2021
photo of Ophiomyia mine in a Lantana leaf @sessilefielder, Los Angeles, CA, 3/13/2022

Posted on 09 de abril de 2022, 03:10 PM by ceiseman ceiseman | 5 comentários | Deixar um comentário